A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice From one of our finest literary biographers comes a brilliant biography of Roald Dahl: the much-loved author and creator of countless iconic literary characters. Roald Dahl was one of the world's greatest storytellers. He conceived his vocation as as that of any fearless explorer and, in his writing for children, he was able to tap into a child's viewpoint throughout his life. He crafted tales that were exotic in scenario, frequently invested with a moral, and filled with vibrant characters that endure in public imagination to the present day. In this brand-new biography, Matthew Dennison re-evaluates the traditional narrative surrounding Dahl—that of school sporting hero, daredevil pilot, and wartime spy-turned-author—and examines surviving primary resources as well as Dahl's extensive literary output to tell the story of a man who identified as a rule-breaker, an iconoclast, and a romantic—both insider and outsider, war hero and child's friend.
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A new biography by Matthew Dennison of the creator of many much-loved literary characters.
The familiar image of Roald Dahl is that of an old man, a tall, stooping figure usually dressed in a long cardigan, a rug over his knees in his writing hut. But one of our greatest storytellers was, as a young man, a dashing, very tall, handsome chap who women were very much drawn to.
He was brought up by his feisty Norwegian mother, and her love of the country myths and folk tales of the North influenced his writing. A flying accident which nearly killed him ended his war career, which was followed by time in Washington, where he began his writing career with short stories. There he met the beautiful actress Patricia Neale and began a family. Tragedy struck when his elder daughter died from measles, his baby son was nearly killed in a road accident in New York, and his wife suffered a near fatal stroke from which he single-handedly forced her back into good health. For all his life he remained unafraid to court controversy, or to make his views known forcefully.
